Lagerfeld "had no wish to evade the law," and trusts his financial advisers to work out the situation with the tax authorities, Caroline Lebar, a spokeswoman for the designer, said Thursday. She would not comment on the specific allegations in L'Express magazine, saying only that a tax procedure is underway.

The national tax service would not comment on an ongoing case.

The case does not concern Chanel, where Lagerfeld has been chief designer since the 1980s, and Chanel would not comment Thursday.

Lagerfeld himself is not allowed to discuss the procedure while it is pending, said Lebar. He and Chanel are preparing for upcoming spring-summer 2016 haute couture shows in Paris later this month.

Also this week, prominent international art dealer Guy Wildenstein and relatives were scheduled to go on trial in Paris accused of tax fraud and money laundering, but the trial was postponed until May. He is facing a bill for back taxes of more than $600 million.